Torch



Aug. 9,1921* W. H. MCNUTT TORCH Filed Oct.

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, container,

Patented Auf. 9, 1927.

WILLIAM n. MCNUTT, or New YORK, N.'Y.

TORCH.

Application led October 18, 1926. Serial No. 142,243.

This invention relates to a torch in the form of a tube attachedlto a container for the liquid to be burned. p

One of the objects of the invention is .to provide in a device of this character, a valve control whereby the liquid will not Vspill out in any position, but when inverted and the bottom pressed, the valve will rise and permit flow of the liquid into the torch body.

A urther object of the invention is .to provide vsuch a device in which the valve will open outwardly, whereby upon generation of considerable pressure in the container, the valve willr-aise under pressure and Vpermit escape of the gas generated, until the'pressureis relieved.

YA `further object of the invention is'to provide in connection with a suitable removable la perforated torch tube that is carried by the container, which tube contains porous material and which will have a controlled valve, thatfcan be operated by the user-to lpermit the desiredquantity of the liquid'to pass to the interior of the tube."

Another object of theiinvention is toprovide a container in somewhatof the' form .ot an. oil canor a squirt can 'with a Vdeiiected bottom wall, sothat by invertingth'e device, a desiredquantity of the liquid ,can flow. out by merely pressing inwardlyron' the bottom. ,Afurther lobject of the inventionis to pro! videa torch device -in which a `perforated tube will hold a quantityfof fuel in a porous mass in thetube, to be ignited, and toV pro-. vide adjustable meansV for feedingacurrent ot air ,to the fla-me that will 'provide a kind of Bunsen burner effect, so 'that a blue flame ora green flame will be produced, and the etliciencyV muchincreased.V

In 1`the.accompanying Tdrawing showing one embodiment of my invention, .#Fignl `is a side-elevationlpartly'broken away;` l

l'ig.` 2 is rra vvertical `section through the same. Fig. 3 is a vertical sectionenlargediadjw cent Vthe va'lve.- f. j

Fig. 4r shows a modification. Y

A s shown inthe drawing, I providea container in somewhat'the `orrnot asquirt can, having a conical body 2 :anda dished bottom .S-that'fcan be pressed inwardly, and' will return yto its outer'convex position as shown.

The' body has` a closure member 4t, screwthreaded to' screw into the screw threaded extension 5 of the body 2.v This closure member is shown provided withan ,eXtension tube or spout 6, that `is usually conical, and forms 'the outlet for the container. Thisoutflet is yshown as controlled by a suitable valve pressed inwardly by a spring, and which valve member is brought down for engagement withthe bott-om 3, so that whenl the bottom isV pressed inwardly or upwardly the valve will open for discharge of the con@ tents when the container is inverted. In the form shown I Vprovide a valve stem'7, that carries a ball 8 at the upper end. A sleeve 9 is placed on the stem, and then the stem and ball with the sleeve are insert-ed in the out let spout v6 as shown. The sleeve forms a tight iit therein, and is secured by a suitable means, such as solder. -It will be seen from 4 that the ba'll valve lengages the inner edge of the` sleeve 9.v The stem 7 isfshown as ca'rryinga spiral spring 10, that presses at its upper end against the closure 4, while the lower end is secured to the stem by suitable means such, as a nut 1 1 and washer 12. If desired a plug ot solderl 13 may be arranged aroundthe stem end to form a rounded plug tor engagement with the bottom wall 3 as shown.v Since the closure is removable these parts can be readily assembled, and the stem is so designed that when the .closure is inserted the lower end of the stem 'will 'engage the outwardlyV deflected bottom 3, while 'the spring willhold the valve tightly seated, and prevent escape of the contents inV any position of the container. Obviously, when the container is inverted andthe bottoni pressed inwardly in the usual manner of operating a squirt can, the` ball valve 8 will be lifted Jfrom the seat, and the contents will flow outwardly as long as the valve. is raised.; but as soonas the valve'is released the spring will again seat the valve, and prevent escape of the fluid, or any gas that may be the container. This -is of greatadvantage where a liquid is employed thatA is quickly evaporated, but it will be seen that this furnishesa safety valve, vwhereby upon a high pressure in the container, the val-ve will thereby be raised, andQpermitfth-e slow escape ot thev gas through 'the' outlet spout. until the pressure is relieved, When the valve will again'se'at.

. f Another portion of' my invention is a torch or torch tube, that is attached to a container, that will form a base therefor, and which container is provided with a valvenormally closed, but on operation of a. certain part of the container, its contents Will be caused to flow by gravity into the interior of` the torch to saturate a porous Wall of the same, so that only the desired quantity for immediate use Will be admitted to the torch.

As shown I provide a torch tube 14, that has its upper end portion 15 perforated, and

into the torch tube 14, and terminates at. The torch tube.

about the middle portion. contains suitable porous material, such as asbestos 19, extending around thespout tubev G from its lower portion, and Which fills the tube 14 around and above the spout 6.. It Will thus be seen that a porous mass is provided between the spout 6 and the tube 14.

The sleevelS may have a tight lit on the tube 14 as shown in Fig. 4, but preferably is made slightly larger than the inner tube so that a. passage for air is provided in allpositions of the sleeve except in the upper position Where the perforations are closed. Means are preferably provided to retain the sleeve in all positions, and as shown tWo friction clips 21 and Q2 are secured to the sleeve, as by rivets, that Will press against thetube 14 and hold the sleeve in all positions. This sleeve as stated Will serve to expose all of the perfor-ations, or any desired portion of them, by sliding it down, but at the same timea free passage for air is provided through the sleeve between it and the inner tube. lVhen the torch is ignited at the perforations exposed, the flame in burning Willdraw air up between the sleeve and tube, and Will pass into the interior of the flame, and act precisely on the Bunsen burner principle, as has been found by repeated experiment. It has been further discovered that in a torch and torch tube of this nature a smaller' relative portion of the torch tube is needed to give the required flame, because of this greater intensity. It has been further discovered that a much cheaper fuel can beemploycd; Where alcohol or its equivalent was used, a mixture of a hydro-carbon cost`- ing much less can be used, and a much better flame produced.

It Will be understood that the container 2 formsasuitablebase for the device, so that it can be placed on a floor or table, or any suitable place, While the old form of torch tube had to be returned to its can, or al special form of holder.

In the use of the device, the closure to Which the torch is secured, is unscreived and the container filled With the desired fuel, as gasoline, or other fluid. llhen the closure is returned to place the container Will be effectually closed by the ball valve, and the device is now inverted and the bottom of the canis depressed, that Will allow the liuid to pass down through the spout into the absorbent mass inside of the torch tube, and saturate it, when the torch can be ignited, by sliding the sleeve down from its upper positon, therequired dist-ance to give the desired flame; or the sleeve can remain in the upper closing position until it is desired to use the torch any time later, as the small perforated port-ion is not exposed and the fluid Will'not evaporate or spill. Only sufficient of the fluid is permitted to pass into the tube to saturate the torch tube mass, and none of the fluid Will run down onto the can or the hand of the user. It Willbe further understood that the torch can be held in any position but Will not spill the fluid. When the flame becomes reduced or extinguished, the device ismerely inverted and the bottom pressed, when another portion of the fluid Will'pass down into the torch tube.

In the present construction of safety torches for thawing frozen gas and Waterv pipes, the torches are filled or charged by means of absorption, by keeping the torch constantly immersed in the burning fluid, using aspecial safety can, in combination With the torch. The removal of the torch from the safety canusually Will cause the liquid to run down tothe hand andclothing of the user when igniting the torch and danger. of'causing a fire is much greater With the separate storage can separatefrom the torch, than vWith the present form of combined torch and container. Another objection is the great Waste of fuel Where a storage can Ais exposed' on removal of the torch tube., as the fuel Will quickly evaporate.

In Fig. 4 is shovvn a modification in which the spout 6 is surrounded by a tube 2O of perforated metal that is enclosed in the mass 19 of asbestos or other porous material. This forms a chamber around the spouty and the fuel from the container will rst enter thisV chamber and then be absorbed `by the asbestos.

provide a free endwise passage for the air through the sleeve between the tube and sleeve, in all intermediate positions toform a Bunsen burner flame, and means to hold the sleeve in adjusted positions.

2. A torch device Comprising a torch tube perforated for a portion of its length, a mass of refractory porous material in the tube, a sleeve slidable outside of the tube to entirely expose the perforations in one position, and to slide to enclose more or less of the per orated portion, and restrict the flame, said sleeve being slightly larger than the tube to provide a free endvvise passage for the air through the sleeve between the tube and sleeve, in all intermediate positions to form a Bunsen burner flame, and spring clips on the sleeve that engage the tube to. frictionally hold the sleeve in adjusted positions.

3. A torch device comprising a fluid container, a closure for the container, a torch tube carried by the closure and perforated at the outer portion of its length, a nozzle eX- tending from the closure into the tube, refractory porous material in the tube surrounding the nozzle, means for controlling the passage of the iuid from the container into the tube, a sleeve slidable outside of the tube to entirely expose the perforations in one position, and to slide to enclose more or less of the perforated portion, and restrict the flame, said sleeve being slightly larger than the tube to provide a free endWise passage for the air through the sleeve between the tube and sleeve, in all intermediate positions to form a Bunsen burner flame, and means to retain the sleeve in various positions of adjustment.

Signed at New York city, N. Y., on October 14, 1926.

WILLIAM H. MNUTT. 

